Kids Off The Couch - April Radar Screen!

April's not over yet!

Earth Day, Ticket Giveaway, and Movies to Remember

Just because you're back from vacation doesn't mean the fun has to stop. Earth Day falls on April 22, but seems to get celebrated all month long, as folks search for ways to "green-up" their lives. In fact, many celebrations take place this week, and our picks are listed below. For a little spring fun, we have a ticket giveaway to Madame Tussauds. Finally, we take a moment to remember the work of director Sidney Lumet, who died two weeks ago.

Ticket Giveaway: Selena Gomez is the latest celebrity to be immortalized at Madame Tussauds Hollywood, and we have 4 Family-Four packs for subscribers this month. In order to win, shoot us a note telling us which celeb your kids want to be photographed with, and we'll publish the winners' photos on our blog.

EARTH DAY is APRIL 22: Inspire your kids to action by introducing them to CNN video clip a 13 year-old German boy who is traveling around the world to get kids to plant a million trees. Ready to do something locally? Join a Heal the Bay Nothing but Sand Beach Clean-Up this weekend, and then enjoy special Earth Day activities at the Santa Monica Pier. Drop in on the celebrations at the Descanso Gardens, this Saturday, April 16 (best for younger kids). Celebrate community and the arts at a Park La Brea's Earth Day Celebration, part of the Miracle Mile Art Walk, by visiting the Craft and Folk Art Museum's table, Saturday April 16. Try not to drive on Friday, April 22 -- then celebrate at Wilshire Center's Earth Day and Car Free Day celebration, including a free outdoor screening of Avatar with a special appearance by director James Cameron at 7:30 PM.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: Come meet another inspiring young person: an 11 year-old ornithologist joins a special exhibit at the Skirball Cultural Center on Sunday, April 17 at 10:00 AM when the museum partners with The Audubon Society and the LA Zoo for Family Fun with Fine-Feathered Friends, an afternoon where you'll learn about bird-watching and participate in some neat art projects. (Click here for our Popcorn Adventure about Birding at the Sepulveda Basin). If your family got a kick out of last month's Born to Be Wild 3D, they'll be glad to know another fun animal film is in theaters. African Catsopens on April 22 and is an extraordinary new film from Disneynature, the studio that presented Oceans and Earth. Catch the new film with a live animal show called Exotic Animals From Around the World at the El Capitan Theater through May 18.

MIDDLE SCHOOL: On Sunday, April 17, another fabulous FREE concert takes place at World City at the Music Center -- Sakai Flamenco & Vagabond Opera. Tickets are distributed on Grand Avenue at 2nd Street. Distribution for tickets begins at 11:30 AM for the 12:30 PM performance and 1:00 PM for the 2:00 PM performance. If your kids are counting the days until the last Harry Potter film is released (7/15) keep them busy with this: College kids have figured out how to play Quiddich, the game invented by JK Rowling in the Harry Potter books. Click here for a fun YouTube video that shows how the game has been adapted at UCLA.

TEENS and PARENTS: Sidney Lumet's very first film is a masterpiece that starred a young Henry Fonda, 12 Angry Men. Moments when an individual stands up to the system, as Fonda did against the eleven other members of a jury who wanted to convict a young man of murder, were his specialty. From Serpico and Dog Day Afternoon, to The Verdict and Network, he set the bar for socially conscious story-telling.

One More Thing: Looking for end-of-year Teacher Gifts? Check out Artisinal LA at Santa Monica Place this weekend.

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Water: Our Thirsty World + Donating to Water Charities = Kids Off The Couch

To commemorate Mother Earth on her birthday (April 22), we turn to one of the planet's most pressing issues - the availability of fresh water. The current National Geographic magazine, Water: Our Thirsty World, explores the social, religious and cultural uses of water around the globe, and demonstrates how diminishing water supplies affect communities, people and animals. Our kids are pretty good about basic earth-friendly practices but the disparity between the abundance of water in our lives and the shocking lack of clean water for many families around the world made our household conservation efforts feel like a drop in the bucket. How could we redouble our efforts to help others? With the help of the National Geographic website, we found fabulous charities deeply committed to helping those in need and set about trying to raise funds to make a difference. From organizing school fund-raising efforts to substituting a birthday gift with the gift of clean water for someone else, we are trying to incorporate an awareness of this pressing need into our daily lives. Now, that's something to think about in the shower. (Click here for more on the magazine and for our list of charities that specialize in water issues).

Hot Ideas for a Cool Planet: Wall-E + Green Ideas from Cool Globes = Kids Off The Couch

Happy Birthday, Mother Earth! We like to think of Earth Day as an annual check-up, taking stock of our family's habits and discovering new ways to be green. A fascinating public art project is visiting Los Angeles, where we live, and we're so impressed with its message that we wanted to share it with you. The 60 larger-than-life Cool Globes are created by artists and offer a colorful message about how citizens can change the world. Started by a mother who wanted to spread the message about global warming, the Cool Globes project outlines ideas from riding bikes to recycling to using sustainable building products, to reinvigorate our green agenda. Your family can go online to see each beautiful globe and read up on the conservation concepts behind each piece of art. To think about Earth's future, we cued up this year's Oscar-winner for Best Animated Feature; Pixar's Wall-E tells the story of a dilapidated trash-compacting robot left behind on Earth after humans were forced to escape into space from a planet destroyed by pollution and garbage. Inspired by Wall-E's heroic journey to save Earth, our kids are visiting the Cool Globes website for new ideas on how they can help reverse global warming. Click here for KOTC's ideas for getting greener, and to visit the Cool Globes website